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of the former, he opened, on the seventeenth of August, his fire on the latter, and, on the twenty-third, after seven days bombardment,
Fort Sumter was reported a shapeless and harmless mass of ruins.
Being under the fire of other forts of the enemy, and inaccessible by land, our troops could not occupy it, and a few guns have since been temporarily remounted, but they have been as often silenced.
General Gillmore now vigorously pushed forward his sappers against
Fort Wagner, and on the morning of the seventh of September, took possession of that place, and also of Battery Gregg, most of the garrison having made their escape in boats during the night.
He captured in all thirty-six pieces of artillery and a large amount of ammunition.
General Gillmore's operations have been characterized by great professional skill and boldness.
He has overcome difficulties almost unknown in modern sieges.
Indeed, his operations on
Morris Island constitute almost a new era in the science of engineering and gunnery.
Since the capture of
Forts Wagner and Gregg, he has enlarged the works, and established powerful batteries, which effectually command
Fort Sumter, and can render efficient aid to any naval attack upon
Charleston.
They also control the entrance to the harbor.
Department of the Gulf.
Major-General Banks took command of the Department of the Gulf on the seventeenth of December.
Almost immediately on assuming command, he ordered a detachment of troops to
Galveston, Texas, to occupy that place under the protection of our gunboats.
Colonel Burrill, with three companies of the Forty-second Massachusetts volunteers, the advance of the expedition, arrived at that place on the evening of the twenty-fourth December.
On consultation with the commander of the blockading force, he landed his men upon the wharf, and took possession of the city on the first of January.
Before the arrival of the remainder of our forces, the rebels made an attack by land, with artillery and infantry, and by water with three powerful rams.
Colonel Burrill's command of two hundred and sixty men were nearly all killed and taken prisoners.
The
Harriet Lane was captured, and the flag-ship
Westfield was blown up by her commander to prevent her falling into the hands of the enemy.
The rebels also captured the coal-transports and a schooner.
The commanders of the
Harriet Lane and
Westfield, and a number of other naval officers and men, were killed.
The remainder of the expedition did not leave
New-Orleans till December thirty-first, and arrived off
Galveston on the second of January, the day after our forces there had been captured or destroyed by the enemy.
Fortunately they did not attempt to land, and returned to
New-Orleans in safety.
It is proper to remark that this expedition was not contemplated or provided for in
General Banks's instructions.
On the eleventh of January,
General Weitzel, with a force of infantry and artillery, aided by the gunboats under
Lieutenant Commanding Buchanan, crossed
Berwick Bay, and attacked the rebel gunboat
Cotton, in the
Bayou Teche.
This gunboat, being disabled by the fire of our naval and land forces, was burned by the rebels.
The loss of
General Weitzel's command in this expedition was six killed and twenty-seven wounded. A number were killed and wounded on our gunboats, and among the former,
Lieutenant Commanding Buchanan.
On learning of the capture of the
Queen of the West by the rebels, above
Port Hudson, and their movements in
Red River and the
Teche,
Admiral Farragut determined to run past the enemy's batteries, while the land forces at
Baton Rouge made a demonstration on the land side of
Port Hudson.
The demonstration was made, and, on March fourteenth,
Admiral Farragut succeeded in passing the batteries with the
Hartford and
Albatross.
The
Monongahela and
Richmond fell back, and the
Mississippi grounded, and was blown up by her commander.
Had our land forces invested
Port Hudson at this time, it could have been easily reduced, for its garrison was weak.
This would have opened communication, by the
Mississippi River, with
General Grant at
Vicksburgh.
But the strength of the place was not then known, and
General Banks resumed his operations by the
Teche and
Atchafalaya.
In the latter part of March,
Colonel Clarke was sent with a small force up the Pontchatoula, and destroyed the railroad bridge at that place.
He captured a rebel officer and four privates, and three schooners loaded with cotton.
His loss was six wounded.
At the same time
General Dickerson was sent to the
Amite River to destroy the Jackson Railroad.
He proceeded as far as Camp Moore, captured forty-three prisoners, a considerable amount of cotton, and destroyed valuable rebel manufactories.
In his operations up the
Teche and
Atchafalaya,
General Banks encountered the enemy, under
Sibley,
Taylor, and
Mouton, at several points, and defeated them in every engagement.
Buttea La Rose was captured, with a garrison and two heavy guns.
By the gunboats, under
Lieutenant Commanding T. Cooke, of the navy,
General Banks reached
Alexandria on the eighth of May, the enemy retreating toward
Shreveport and into
Texas.
In this expedition
General Banks reports the capture of two thousand prisoners, twenty-two pieces of artillery, two transports, and a large amount of public property.
We destroyed three gunboats and eight transports.
Our own loss, in the different engagements with the enemy, was very slight — numbers not given.
General Banks now returned to the
Mississippi River, and crossed his ármy to
Bayou Sara, where he formed a junction, on the twenty-third of May, with
General Augur's forces from
Baton Rouge.
The latter had an engagement with the enemy at Port Hudson Plains on the twenty-third,
